October 1, 2009, 9:24 am
Oracle is determined to keep MySQL if it acquires Sun, but the reason likely has little to do with open source and everything to do with Microsoft. Oracle doesn’t compete with open source. Not really. Open source is simply a means to an end, and in the case of MySQL, a means to denting Microsoft’s rising strength in emerging markets where Oracle’s expensive database technology doesn’t resonate.
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison has said that he has no intention of spinning off MySQL to win EU approval of Oracle’s bid for Sun. This isn’t because Ellison has a soft spot for open source, but rather because MySQL helps Oracle compete in markets–like Web applications, small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), and emerging markets–where its existing database technology doesn’t compete well, but in which Microsoft’s SQL Server does…
